Placenta Previa Neither Rare Or Very Dangerous

DR. PAUL DONOHUE GOOD HEALTH

July 5, 2000|DR. PAUL DONOHUE

Dear Dr. Donohue: My daughter-in-law, in her 20th week of pregnancy, has been diagnosed as having a placenta previa. I have not been able to find much information about this condition. What is the danger to her and to the fetus? -- T.T.

Dear T.T.: The placenta is a pie-shaped structure that provides the fetus with nourishment. Usually it is attached to the upper uterus.

A placenta previa attaches to the lower uterus, and it can block the exit passage, partially or entirely.

The edges of a placenta previa often peel away from the uterus. That leads to vaginal bleeding, and most of the time it is painless bleeding. The bleeding is more apt to occur in the last three months of pregnancy. It can occur earlier, and it has occurred as early as the 20th week of pregnancy.

Placenta previas are not oddities. They happen in one of every 200 pregnancies. Most often they can be handled successfully.

How to treat this condition depends on the age of the fetus and the amount of bleeding. If bleeding stops with bed rest, then the pregnancy can continue without incident. The doctor wants to postpone delivery for as long as possible to permit normal fetal maturity in the uterus.

If bleeding does not stop and is quite brisk, it might force the doctor to perform an emergency cesarean section.

All things considered, it is rare for a placenta previa to result in catastrophe. It causes less than 1 percent of maternal pregnancy-related deaths and less than 5 percent of pregnancy-related infant deaths.

Dear Dr. Donohue: My 14-month-old granddaughter is healthy, but she has a habit of banging her head. All night long you hear her banging the crib. We have tried to calm her, but she continues to bang. Her pediatrician is not too concerned. We are. Please help us. -- A.A.

Dear A.A.: A fairly large number of infants bang their heads -- as many as 15 percent. Head banging usually begins around the eighth month and usually stops by 3 years.

There is no paucity of explanations why babies do this. Some are contradictory. The gist of all these studies is that a baby who bangs its head but checks out normally in all other respects is not suffering from any serious trouble -- mental or physical.

It is quite unlikely that babies hurt themselves from banging their heads. However, play it safe by padding the sides of the crib.